King of the Box Office

It may seem odd, but when I am listening to the soundtracks for the Lord of the Rings, I feel like I am listening to Christmas music. Why is this? For three years, my Christmas Breaks were inextricably linked with a new installment of the series as I would see them three to four times in the theatres. These films dominated the movies at Christmas and were all directed by Peter Jackson. This year he has done it again. Like King Kong and the Empire State Building, he has climbed with ease to the top of the Christmas-season box office for the fourth time in five years. And I must admit that last year did not feel quite the same without a new Lord of the Rings to see.

In The Lord of the Rings, Jackson took the timeless texts of J.R.R. Tolkien and brought them to life on the big screen. While some scenes had to be cut and the movies strayed in some places from the books, Jackson remained remarkably true to the spirit of these stories. Like the books, the films grow from a peaceful depiction of hobbits and the Shire to an awesome depiction of a war covering all of Middle-Earth. Jackson masterfully captured both the growth of the characters as well as the battles of an epic war. Like Tolkien, Jackson created a timeless work of his own.

This Christmas, Jackson decided to try and give life to a classic film, King Kong. Along with many of the key behind-the-scenes people from Lord of the Rings, Jackson again topped the holiday box office. With amazing visual effects, Jackson captivates the audience as he tells the story of the biggest ape ever to hit the screen. Unlike many movies that give away all their big surprises in the previews, Jackson saves his for the first viewing of the movie. You were amazed when you thought that King Kong fought a T-Rex, but what you did not know is that he fights three of them--and he dominates them. However, although the visuals of Kong were impressive, other aspects of the film were not as captivating as The Lord of the Rings. The material Jackson was working with was not as good and the character development did not possess the same depth. Part of this problem was caused by the fact the main character is a mute ape, and although I thought is was cool how he could toy with three T-Rexes, I had little sympathy for him. And while he spends much time wowing audiences with visual effects, he spends less time developing his characters, especially at the end of the film. While these elements may have been lacking, Jackson still delivered with an amazing film that contains things you never thought you would see on the big screen.

Although it seems that his new minimum length for a movie is three hours, Jackson has proven that he can do remarkable things. He made the world of middle-earth real and brought a ginormous ape to life. He has also shown that the better the story he has to work with, the better film he will make. So what should he do next? The Hobbit...perhaps?

A Semester in Review
So what have I been up to in my blogging absence?

It is no news to anyone that my blogging has been less than consistent over my first semester of college. In the midst of homework and Hotchkiss, I just have not had much time for blogging. So you might be asking, "What in the world was I up to that was more important than updating my blog?" Well, I'll respond with a few highlights of my semester.

Generations If you have visited my blog at all recently and noticed the paucity of posts, you have also probably noticed me writing about Generations. Therefore I don't really need to say much about it. Generations is the Bible Study I attend on Thursday nights. From high schoolers to old folks, the people are awesome.

Hotchkiss Before I set foot on TMC as a student, I was destined to live in the best dorm on campus. For seven years before me, my brothers have dwelt in the halls of Hotchkiss. I have followed in their footsteps and I am loving it! The only problem with Hotchkiss is that sometimes I don't get as much homework done as I would like, but frankly, that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make.




Outreach Week Another highlight of my semester was Outreach Week. During this week, TMC students get sent out to various SoCal churches, and I signed up to go to Corona. One of the reasons I enjoyed this week so much was the team I was on. No matter what happened, we were determined to serve the church there and have a good time doing it. I grew through working with teammates, and I even had the chance to teach some of the coolest junior highers in the world on Sunday morning. We even got to help out with 80's skate night. I'm already looking forward to Outreach Week '06. Yeah, Corona.

A Weekend in Texas Early in the semester, the parents of one of my San Antonio friends contacted me about coming out and surprising their son, Derek, for his 18th birthday. Fortunately everything worked out, and I was able to go. Richard Carroll, another friend of mine from BA, also came down to surprise Derek. We all had a great weekend thinking of our good high school memories as well as creating some new ones. From raptor walking to coconuts to football/napping to poker to hanging out in the attic at BA, we had good times all around.

Chapel Every Monday/Wednesday/Friday, TMC students head to the gym for chapel. Each week chapel is a highlight as we all gather together to sing and to hear great messages about God's word from skilled speakers. I remember looking at the schedule on night with my roommate to see who would speak in chapel the next day. When we saw "Sab Matsumoto," our first thought was mutual: Great...a math professor. However, we were both challenged by his great message of living a focused life from Philippians 3. It is such a blessing to hear from so many different speakers throughout the course of the semester.

My Job What is the perfect college job? I used to think that it was one of the jobs that allowed you to do your homework as you merely watched people go in and out of the fitness center. But now I know what it really is--getting payed to go to the basketball games. For all the home basketball games, I work alongside Travis Dalton keeping stats. What beats getting paid to have a front row seat?

These are just a few highlights of what has been an amazing semester. It feels like time has gone by so fast, yet at the same time it seems like ages since the summertime. I can only look forward to the next semester with great anticipation. With all that has happened this semester, who knows what will occur next time around? Who knows what friends I will make, what challenges I will face in the classroom, what random fun will take place in Hotchkiss, what lessons the Lord teach? I sure don't. But I can't wait to find out.